Big box office summer movie season is officially upon us. You know with the release of some sort of Marvel and Avengers related film that it's time to see giant movies, loud explosions, big stars, packed theaters, and a lot of money made. And I'll admit that summer is a pretty fun time for movies. You're never expecting anything brilliant, but it's almost always fun. It's fun to see big special effects and larger than life characters, and it's also fun to see which movie studios spent millions and millions on a movie that gets a 6% on rottentomatoes and bombs (this year I'm calling Warcraft as the universally hated and biggest financial loss for a studio). However, summer is also my favorite times because there are always a few smaller, even "indie" films that sneak through quietly and wind up being some of the best films of the year (in 2014 it was Chef, last year it was Maggie). This year, Green Room definitely makes its presence known and if there's any way you can find it in a theater near you, I suggest you get on it before it is gone.
Green Room follows a punk band "The Ain't Rights" making their way through the Pacific northwest siphoning gas just to get their band-van on the road. They meet a radio DJ who screws up a gig they traveled to play. In return for his blunder, he hooks them up with his cousin who works for a music club that just so happens to be a neo-Nazi skinhead club. This is nothing they're not used to, so they play their set and bounce. However, as they're about to leave, one of the band leaves her phone in the green room. As her and another member go to fetch it, they walk in on a murder. From there, they're all forced into the green room, have their phones taken from them and are kept hostage in the room until everything is straightened out. This is when the club's owner, Darcy (Patrick Stewart), is called. He decides that the band has seen too much and gathers together his neo-Nazi band of misfits in order to kill the shit out of them. He devises a plan to make it look like they've been killed outside the property, so all of the skinheads are advised to use their knives instead of their guns. Of course, the band fight back and what happens throughout the rest of the film is a tense, taut, and emotionally scarring as this becomes crazy good thriller.
Clearly, after reading this, if this doesn't sound like your cup of tea, then it probably won't be. This isn't me trying to get everyone who reads my reviews to go see this movie. Obviously, I know that a film like this is only for those who have a certain appreciation for horror movies. So, if that's you, then you're definitely going to want to seek this movie out wherever you can. It's the best kind of horror too-- one that combines elements of the unknown behind doors as well as the ultra-violent us horror fans thoroughly enjoy. But, it's also that horror movie that doesn't rely on the paranormal or the serial killer-- this is real horror. This is real life. These are ignorant, brainless white supremacists that follow orders and have no problem slicing and dicing at will. These people do exist and these clubs do exist and there is a possibility (very tiny, but still possible) that anyone in this certain scene could wind up in the situation our protagonists end up in. Writer/director Jeremy Saulnier doesn't hold anything back. He strikes early. These skinheads are not to be fucked with and fear nothing. Not because they're so tough, but because there's hardly a brain cell within their hairless heads that tells them this is a bad idea. In fact, one of the best elements of the film that I liked is that most of the skinheads in the movie are little puny wiener kids that, with hair, wouldn't scare a four year old. But, it's because they're within the grasp of a very dangerous belief system, if you hand one a machete, you better believe they won't think twice (or at all) before using it.
It's a highly violent and very dark film that keeps its audience on the edge of their seats from early on in the film. It's a very clever film that doesn't resort to cheap scares and characters that run upstairs when the killer in the mask is chasing the half-naked blonde chick. These characters react to their predicament in ways that combine both cleverness and stupidity. They don't sit and wait to be killed, but they also don't Macgyver intricate weapons out of small tools they find around the room. These are real people with very limited options in a truly terrifying situation.
Patrick Stewart is also a menacing presence with his very quiet leader of the skinheads. He never raises his voice, and he never acts out of emotion. He's a very cold and calculating villain and those are the ones to truly fear. The stillness in his voice send shivers down your spine. This is a very rare film that, if it interests you at all, or if you just want to get your heart racing to the point you might throw up, then checking this movie out in a dark movie theater is the best experience you can have right now. While everyone else is jerking themselves off to Iron Man fighting Captain America because their moms have the same name or something... skip the packed theater and watch a movie that truly deserves your money and your fear.
A-
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